Ratings & Reviews

Non Vintage Brut Excellence

Wine Enthusiast

Jim Gordon - December 01, 2015

Rating: Editors' Choice

"This wine shows amazing complexity, subtle richness, layers of flavor and an ultrasmooth texture. A foundation of fruit flavor is very solid, and the acidity is firm and refreshing. The mouthfeel is plush and the finish lingers, making it a grand wine for a special occasion."

Sunset Magazine

Wine Enthusiast

Jim Gordon - December 01, 2014

Rating:

"Beautifully balanced between maturity and freshness, this elegant bubbly combines appetizing cherry, almond and ginger flavors with a suave texture and long finish. It achieves a level of personality and sophistication beyond simple fruitiness."

Wine Enthusiast

Virginie Boone - December 01, 2013

Rating:

"This lovely Mendocino sparkler, crafted from two-thirds Chardonnay and one-third Pinot Noir, has lilting apple and honey aromas buoyed by a thick head of mousse. There is a pleasing follow-through from aroma to flavor and a core of ripe apple. Dry, soft with a long finish, this is a hard-to-resist food-friendly wine ready to pair widely."

Wine Spectator

Wine Enthusiast

Virginie Boone - December 15, 2011

Rating:

"A delicious Chardonnay and Pinot Noir blend from coolly grown Mendocino grapes that is equal parts golden apple and honey in both aroma and flavor. Creamy from full malolactic fermentation, this sparkler is full-bodied and plenty fruity with a caramel, vanilla tone on the finish. Will pair well with creamy, full-bodied foods."

Washington Post

Wine Enthusiast

Steve Heimoff - November 01, 2010

Rating:

Bargain Sparkler: "Great price for a brut this classically structured. Made from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, it's dry and crisp, with a fine mousse that gives it a creamy smooth mouthfeel. The pineapple, raspberry and vanilla flavors are delicious."

San Francisco Chronicle

Jon Bonné - November 22, 2009

Rating:

"Tex Sawyer's Pinot-dominant blend has a softness and ripe tree fruit flavors that define the Scharffenberger style, but the berry and orange highlights, toasty accents and high-acid precision are a sign of a more anchored, gastronomic wine."

Quarterly Review of Wines

September 01, 2009

Rating: Bubbly of the Quarte

"Scharffenberger Cellars Brut Non-Vintage ... is steely in color, with tight bubble activity, fetching brioche and pastry flavors, along with a creamy and engaging finish. The price is equally engaging."

Wine Enthusiast

Consumer Reports

Wine Enthusiast

Steve Heimoff - December 31, 2008

Rating: 91 points, Editors'

"This is a beautiful brut, easily worth its price. It shows the fancy elegance of more expensive bubblies, with its refined texture and rich but subtle flavors of strawberries, peaches and brioche. Made from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and easy to find, with 25,000 cases produced."

Wine Spectator

Washington Post

Dave McIntyre - December 10, 2008

Rating: 2 Stars (Excellent)

"Arguably the best value in California sparkling wine. It is neither the best nor the cheapest. But it combines champagnelike quality with a budget price (it is often on sale for about $15) and so offers great bada bing for the buck."

Wine Enthusiast

Steve Heimoff - December 31, 2007

Rating: 90 Points, Editor's

"This lovely brut offers real Champagne-like finesse. It’s rich and dry, with yeasty flavors of pineapples, lemon chiffon and raspberries. The mousse is creamy and smooth. This polished bubbly will develop with five years of cellaring."

San Francisco Chronicle

The Examiner, San Francisco

Pamela S. Busch - November 03, 2007

Rating: Recommended Anderson

"[T]he wine has remained tried and true and for the money — you cannot ask for a better sparkling wine made in California. Delicate and a little bit yeasty with vanilla, almond cream and briochelike flavors, keep this in mind for holiday celebrations."

Food & Wine

Dallas Morning News

Tina Danze - August 28, 2007

Rating: Recommended for Sush

"This elegant blend of two-thirds pinot noir and one-third chardonnay melds red-fruit richness with classic chardonnay tropical fruit for a balanced, fruit-forward sparkler. Its cleansing character and dry finish made it a match with the tuna and yellowtail as well as with sushi rolls coated in sesame seeds. 'The toasted, nutty character of the wine is a good complement to the toasted sesame seeds,' Mr. Wardlow said. Mr. Pinnell noted that it cuts through pickled ginger very nicely."

Orange County Fair Wine Competition

Monterey Wine Competition

Wall Street Journal

Dorothy J. Gaiter & John Brecher - December 01, 2006

Rating: Very Good, Best of T

"Most notable was our old friend Scharffenberger, which was the clear best of tasting, with interesting layers of taste, some complexity and an intricate melding of bubbles and wine...Best of tasting. Classy, with true, clean tastes of minerals, toast and ripe grapefruit. Nutty, with a slightly buttery finish that's quite luscious and lasts."

USA Today

San Francisco Chronicle

December 01, 2006

Rating: 2 Stars

"The goal of Scharffenberger winemaker Tex Sawyer is to craft drink-now wines, and the two-thirds Pinot Noir composition highlights freshness over its ability to age. Another woodsy nose, with sharp apple, red fruit and lemon. Very, very precise on the palate, to the point you wish it had a bit more breadth."

Wine Spectator

Wine Enthusiast

Jim Gordon - November 19, 2015

Rating: Editors’ Choice

"This is a classy bottle of bubbly from the light copper color to the lightly fruity, yeasty aromas to the crisp mouthfeel and satisfying spice and raspberry flavors. A sense of layered richness is balanced by good acidity for balance."

Sunset Magazine

Wine Enthusiast

Virginie Boone - December 01, 2013

Rating:

"A majority Pinot Noir (54%), this brut rosé has a healthy head of mousse followed by succulent strawberry flavor, bright acidity and a smooth finish. Dark golden-peach in color, it is layered and well-made, and a great value for the quality."

Wine Enthusiast

Virginie Boone - December 15, 2011

Rating:

"This nonvintage 54% Pinot Noir- 46% Chardonnay sparkler is as good as ever, a beautiful peach color with peach and strawberry aromas and flavors that are not too overpowering, not too subtle, just right. The creamy mousse, medium body and bright acidity make it a stunner with food. Bring on the goat cheese fritters or tempura."

Miami Herald

San Francisco Chronicle

December 05, 2010

Rating: Top 100 Wines of 201

Top 100 Wines of 2010: "Scharffenberger's regular Brut is a standout, but winemaker Tex Sawyer again leaves an impression with the pink version, its richer tones bolstered by 46 percent Chardonnay. With fresh apple and creamy strawberry, plus a pastry-cream richness and a subtle bead. A proper bubbly for the whole meal."

San Francisco Chronicle

Jon Bonné - December 07, 2009

Rating: A Top 100 Wine of 20

"Longtime winemaker Tex Sawyer has been pointing this venerable California name in an excellent direction. This year he's unveiled an elegant rosé that's a pure delight. ...It bursts with fresh strawberry and peach, zingy citrus and a pastry-like opulence."

Quarterly Review of Wines

September 01, 2009

Rating: Bubbly of the Quarte

"Scharffenberger Cellars Brut Rosé Non-Vintage, ... a new release, was the best non-vintage surprise of the tasting because we have not been impressed with many California Rosés (vintage or non-vintage) in past tastings. Winemaker Sawyer has not made a Rosé for several years, but decided the current fruit crop warranted one. The result is delicious. Pink-salmon color, with strawberry/raspberry aromas, fresh, firm flavors of bread and pastry, with buoyant fruitiness and finish."

Winery

San Francisco Chronicle

Jon Bonné - November 22, 2009

Rating:

"Scharffenberger... has also returned to fine form. If the wines of corporate sibling Roederer Estate glance across the water toward Reims, the Scharffenberger wines are unabashedly Californian, with a softer profile (from full malolactic fermentation) and more distinctly ripe fruit. Not only has longtime winemaker Tex Sawyer given the standard brut extra finesse, but the house this year also unveiled a serious rosé."

San Francisco Chronicle

Tara Duggan - February 22, 2008

Rating: Two Stars (Good)

"The experience: The staff person at the tasting room was very knowledgeable about the winery and the history of the area. She pointed out that the brut's composition of two-thirds Pinot Noir and one-third Chardonnay was the opposite of Roederer's, which is made in the French style.
We were regaled with tales of the valley's winemaking past, including the days when nearby Greenwood Road was called Vinegar Ridge because locals would go there during Prohibition to buy 'vinegar' from Italians who grew grapes there."

Scharffenberger Cellars

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